FINANCI A L SERV I C E S Charlotte’s traditional strength as a banking headquarters city provides the foundation for the region’s economic success. As technology transforms the financial services industry, Charlotte’s growing population, young and talented workforce and the innovative spirit that comes along with it, poise the region to take advantage of one of the latest growth industries – FinTech.
• 71 financial institutions based in Charlotte region with more than 70,000 employees* • 2nd largest banking center in United States by total assets ($2.5 trillion)* • Emerging FinTech and Payments Technology Hub with growing entrepreneurial scene
Q1 2017
W W W.C H A R LOT T EC H A M B E R .CO M
*Source: FDIC
FINANC IA L S ERV I C E S Charlotte has been at the forefront of finance since the Federal Reserve’s decision to open an office here back in 1927. In the 90 years since, the area has transformed from a regional banking center to a global hub of financial activity, home to Bank of America’s headquarters and Wells Fargo’s east coast center of operations. More than 70,000 people work in the finance and insurance sector in the Charlotte area. More than 85 percent of those jobs are in Charlotte and surrounding Mecklenburg County. Accounting for around 9 percent of area jobs but nearly 17 percent of all wages, finance is fundamental to the Charlotte economy. In addition to resources for established financial firms, entrepreneurs in the financial and payments technology fields find Charlotte an ideal place to innovate and grow. Charlotte is home to more than 70 FinTech firms, from LendingTree to homegrown payments company AvidXchange, to a growing community of startups helping this historic banking city look toward the future.
MORE THAN
BROKERS AND INVESTMENTS ADVISORS REGISTERED WITH FINANCIAL I ND U S TRY REG U LATORY AUTHORITY.
Source: FINRA
S E LECT F I N TECH COMPA NIES I N CH AR LOTTE AR E A
MAJO R F I N AN C E E M P LOY E RS COMPANY
REGIONAL EMPLOYMENT
LINE OF BUSINESS
1 0 , 0 0 0 LICENSED
COMPANY
REGIONAL EMPLOYMENT
LINE OF BUSINESS
AvidXchange
800
Payments automation
287*
Online lending
Wells Fargo Company
23,000
Commercial banking
LendingTree LLC
Bank of America Corporate
15,000
Commercial banking
Zenmonics Inc
75
Mobile banking platform
TIAA
4,000
Third party administration of insurance & pension funds
Sentry One
70
SQL Server & Microsoft optimization
BB&T Corp
2,065
Commercial banking
Passport Parking, LLC
58
Transportation system and payment
LPL Financial Services
2,850
Financial investment advice services
Levvel
49
FinTech strategy consulting
Allstate Insurance Co
2,000
Direct property & casualty insurance carriers
Impact Financial Systems
30
MetLife Inc
1,500
Insurance agencies & brokerages
Business process automation for finance & insurance industry
Sunlight Financial
27
Mobile lending for solar installations
Vanguard Group Inc, The
1,300
Investment services
PrecisionLender
20
Pricing management
850
Consumer financing
DealCloud, Inc
20
Private equity deal management
Payzer
10
Mobile payments application
Ally Financial
Sources: Industry databases, Businesswise, Hoovers
2x T H E
N AT I O N A L AV E R A G E O F F I N A N C I A L A N A LY S T S
Source: JobsEQ
Notes: Other large FinTech companies with significant presence in Charlotte include TransCentra, Synechron, Fiserv, ACI Universal Payments; Other Charlotte-based FinTech companies include Commerce Signals, Clear Markets, ThreatSwitch, Let’s Talk Payments, Thrive, RediPay, SpendBoss.
Sources: Industry databases, Businesswise, Hoovers *Announced expansion & addition of 314 new jobs in November 2016.
5 x N AT I O N A L AV E R A G E
E M P LOY E D IN COMMERCIAL BANKING
Source: JobsEQ
ADVANTAG E S O F D OI N G BU SI N ESS I N C H ARLOTTE ACC E S S
TALENT
A F FORDABILITY
QUALITY OF L I FE
A central location on the U.S.
Charlotte’s companies rely
Comprehensive tax reform
Charlotte consistently ranks
on a talented, young and
has brought North Carolina
high as a destination city
growing workforce. More than
one of the lowest flat
for all ages. More than
43 percent of Mecklenburg
corporate tax rates in the
33,000 newcomers arrive
County residents have
nation, 3 percent as of
in the Charlotte area each
bachelor’s or higher and more
2017. North Carolina
year, drawn by career
arrive each year.
regularly ranks high in
opportunities, diverse
business friendliness.
living options and a cost
East Coast and the sixth busiest global airport puts the world within Charlotte’s reach. 53 percent of the US population lives within 12-hours trucking distance or a two-hour flight, and with more than 700 daily
of living 95.9 percent
nonstop flights to 150-plus
of the national average.
destinations, nowhere is too far away.
LARGEST 15 OCCUPATIONS IN FINANCE AND INSURANCE SECTOR
PROJECTED GROWTH RATE BY 2026
2016 EMPLOYMENT
AVERAGE WAGES
LOCATION QUOTIENT1
Accountants & Auditors
11,618
$77,700
1.33
20.0%
Management Analysts
7,225
$93,500
1.49
24.0%
Business Operations Specialists; All Other
NE AR LY
6,790
$73,700
1.11
16.0%
BUSINESS AND
Loan Officers
4,873
$76,200
2.71
18.0%
FINANCE-RELATED
Human Resources Specialists
4,388
$66,900
1.38
14.0%
DEGREES AWARDED
Financial Analysts
3,240
$92,100
2.04
22.0%
EACH YEAR AT
Personal Financial Advisors
3,049
$109,700
2.25
40.0%
Compliance Officers
1,620
$67,900
1.04
16.0%
Credit Analysts
997
$87,900
2.43
17.0%
Insurance Underwriters
859
$90,500
1.67
10.0%
Compensation, Benefits & Job Analysis Specialists
778
$66,900
1.43
14.0%
Appraisers & Assessors of Real Estate
656
$73,500
1.16
20.0%
Financial Examiners
393
$89,500
2.02
24.0%
Budget Analysts
333
$72,300
0.92
14.0%
Credit Counselors
251
$55,600
1.33
21.0%
OCCUPATION
Location quotient measures the concentration of jobs in Mecklenburg County compared to the national average. Values above 1.0 mean higher concentrations & lower than 1.0 are lower than the national average. Source: Jobs EQ & U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 1
(NAICS code 52)
3,000
48 AR E A
HIGHER-EDUCATION I NS TI TU T IO N S. Source: IPEDS and institutions
RECEN C ATI ON S AN D EXPAN SI ONS REC E N T R E LO LOC
Global investment firm Dimensional Fund Advisors
An early FinTech pioneer, LendingTree’s Charlotte
is building its East Coast headquarters, which will
headquarters opened in 1998. In late 2016, the
employ 316 people, in Charlotte’s South End.
company announced it would double the size of its Ballantyne headquarters, eventually employing 600 people.
O T H E R M A J O R F I N A N C I A L E X PA N S I O N S
630
200
NEW J O BS
600
I N 2015 - 2016
245
NEW JO B S
120
NEW JOBS
NEW JOB S
NEW JO B S
AMONG CHARLOTTE DOUGLAS AIRPORT’S MORE THAN
700
DAI LY FLIG HT S,
DOZENS FLY TO MAJOR NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL CENTERS OF FINANCE, INCLUDING: 44 daily nonstop flights to NEW YORK 18 daily nonstop flights to CHICAGO 4 daily nonstop flights to SAN FRANCISCO 1 daily nonstop flight to LONDON W W W.C H A R LOT T EC H A M B E R .CO M
1 daily nonstop flight to FRANKFURT